Bonagany and entertainment highlights of Family Weekend

If you are visiting St. Bonaventure for Family Weekend, Sept. 19-21, make sure to stop in Allegany for the Bonagany festivities.

Bonagany celebrates the friendship between St. Bonaventure University and the village of Allegany. The festival promotes a feeling of well-being between the college and town, said Phil Hardiman, original co-chair of Bonagany.

The festival started in 2005 as the idea of a committee addressing problem areas between the college and the surrounding community, Hardiman said. Committee members proposed Bonagany, which has been part of Family Weekend ever since, he said.

“It’s been very successful the previous three years and I see it going on for a long time,” Hardiman said.

Bonagany includes fun family activities such as live music, food vendors, portrait artists, clowns and much more, Hardiman said.

The number of vendors has grown each year, starting with 13 in 2005 and increasing to 80 last year, Hardiman said. This year's event is co-sponsored by the Cattaraugus County Arts Council and will feature fine artists and artisans from around the region.

Also during the festival, the Allegany Alumni Band, Sean O’Shea, Andy Hannon and The Jam will provide live music.

Hardiman said that the festival became more popular with the community last year.

“I think with the addition of all the extra vendors and artists, it’s becoming more of a local and even a regional draw now,” he said.

Bonagany takes place Saturday, Sept. 20, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is concentrated around Town Hall on Main Street in Allegany.

Bonagany isn’t the only activity waiting for families when they visit their Bona student during Family Weekend. The weekend’s activities are designed to give family members a chance to learn more about the University and to enjoy the time with their student.

The band Usual Suspects will kick off the weekend Friday night with a performance in the Rathskeller, located in the basement of the Hickey Dining Hall.  

On Saturday, families can take part in the 13th annual Family Weekend Golf Tournament at the St. Bonaventure Golf Course. Students may register for the event in the Richter Center.

If golf isn’t your activity of choice, try coffee with University president Sr. Margaret Carney, O.S.F.; an alumni reception; or shopping with your student around the area.

Dr. Roger Keener, Counseling Center director, will also lead a discussion about students’ first months at St. Bonaventure, and expectations for the future.

The weekend concludes on Sunday with a Family Weekend Mass at 10:30 a.m.

A full schedule of events is available at http://www.sbu.edu/About_SBU.aspx?id=18626.

-Christy Andrzejewski
Class of '11

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New Bona Lingo: Re-Cycle? Passport?

St. Bonaventure’s First-Year Experience program aims to get freshmen involved and feeling at home on campus.

This begins as early as Welcome Days, the four-day period before the start of classes when freshmen are introduced to campus. This year, incoming freshmen were offered a chance to help paint and decorate bikes for a new program, Bona Re-Cycles.

“It was a great turnout, between 30 and 40 students both days,” said Dr. Nancy Casey, director of the First-Year Experience and associate professor of education.

The donated bikes can be used for free by any student at any time, and are meant to provide a “quick and healthy transportation system on campus,” according to Casey. The program will continue to accept donations of bikes, hoping to provide a steadily increasing amount of free transportation to the St. Bonaventure campus.

The bikes may be found at any number of new racks installed around campus. Once a student reaches his destination, he drops off the bike so it can be used by another student. Though the bikes can’t be reserved ahead of time or taken off campus, they can be used on the scenic Allegheny River Trail.

The First-Year Experience Council plans to establish a student group, to be chartered by the Student Government Association, to oversee the operation and expansion of the project. Anyone wishing to donate a bicycle or request information about involvement in the student group should e-mail Casey at ncasey@sbu.edu.

This year marks the return of another First-Year Experience project, the Passport program. This, explained Casey, is an endeavor to “get freshmen engaged in intellectual and social life on campus.”

The Passport is a sister-program to the University 101 course all freshmen are encouraged to take. Both the course and the program deal with adaptation to college life. While the course covers skill development and good habits, the Passport program requires freshmen to attend events or seminars on campus to fulfill a number of requirements. These requirements include a broad range of areas, such as “Franciscan Values,” “Diversity,” and “Academic Opportunities.” Last year’s list of possible Passport worthy events included attending a religious service on campus, listening to a lecture on the use of library facilities and attending a speech by Eric Schlosser, author of the book “Fast Food Nation,” last year’s All Bonaventure Reads selection.

Casey said the Passport program allows students to see the variety of events available at St. Bonaventure. Also, she added, placing the responsibility for finding these seminars and lectures on the students pushes them to more quickly become familiar with campus.

Passport activities are invaluable tools for letting students get to know St. Bonaventure. As students accumulate signatures under each of the requisite boxes, they will also be accumulating knowledge about their college.

-Connor McDonald
Class of '11

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